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Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Sorry readers, for suddenly going dark around the middle of November, without so much as a "be back later", or even, to be honest, a true reason for failing to update, except of course not doing so. I got behind, and just never caught up.

Anyway, so here's a post made up of every statistic of my trip I could think of. Hope it's not too overwhelming, and maybe some data junky like myself will find it interesting. (Stats relating to most frequently asked questions are underlined.)

General Statistics:

Time away: 195 days

Riding days: 96

Riding weeks: 22

(at least 2 days traveling by bike)

Nights camping: 50

Nights on bed/couch: 123

Nights in hotels: 8 (all free to me)

Total stays of 3 days or more: 11

Longest time in one location: 20 days - Hartland, Virginia

Runner up: 9 days - Griffins, Florida

Most nights in one state: 24 - Virginia

Runner up: 23 - Florida

Most riding days in a state: 13 - New York

Runner up: 9 - Montana

Total one night states: 4

(Iowa, Indiana, Rhode Island, Alabama)

States entered (by bike) more than once: 2

(Pennsylvania, twice; New York, three times)

Most days with same people (non-consecutive): 24 days - Hartland people

Most water drank in single day: 2 gallons
Most water carried: 1.5 gallons

Weight of bike loaded: 120 pounds
Number of times I folded my bike: well over a dozen

Personal Biking Records:

Fastest speed attained: 43 miles per hour

Fastest on gravel: 34 miles per hour

Slowest hill descent: <10 miles per hour

Average speed: ~9.5 miles per hour

Longest riding day: 77 miles

Shortest riding day: 6 miles

Average riding day: 42 miles

Financial Statistics:

Total expenditure: $1300 (+ $300 for GYC*)

Total money received: ~$500

Most money carried at one time: $500

Cash left at end of trip: $140

Least expensive traveling week: $21

Most expensive week: $136 - sprained wrist ($80 of that)

Most expensive day (non-emergency/equipment): $46 - Niagara Falls

Money spent en route on repairs/equipment replacement: ~$300

Maintenance/Repairs/Challenges:

Flat tires: 4

Preventable flat tires: 2 (failed patch)

Tires worn out: 2

Lost/destroyed bike helmets: 2

Lost/broken bungee straps: 6

Repairs done to panniers: 5

Number of bike shops visited: 9**

Times bike tipped over: dozens

Bike crashes: 2 (one significant)

Most rain dealt with in one night: 2 inches

Longest steady headwind: 3.5 weeks

(Wyoming, South Dakota, Minnesota)

Highest altitude reached: 6000 feet

Most challenging hill: Butte, Montana - 1200 feet, 2 miles

Number of people trying to do me harm: 0

Most roadkill deer seen in a day: 7 - Montana

Comments on the above:

If you come across this post while researching a trip of your own, let me know if you have any other questions, or if this has somehow proven useful to you.

The total cost of maintenance/repairs/equipment replacement may seem especially high. This is due to first, starting out with an apparently well used bike, second, not quite knowing how to service it myself, and third, negligence on my part, resulting in otherwise unneeded spending (lost tail light, lost bungee cords, lost/broken helmet). Also, something not shown by this data, 2/3 of this spending happened in the last 1/3 of the trip, and the last 25% of my riding. If I were just going to the coast, I would have been able to cut my number of shop visits from 9 to 3.

I almost never rode my bike more than 5 days during a week, and managed to nearly always find somewhere to stay for the weekend, which undoubtably had the effect of lowering both my traveling distance and expense.

* - GYC - Generation of Youth for Christ conference in Orlando, Florida. The official end of my trip.

Monday, March 10, 2014

Loyalty is a wonderful thing. There's nothing so grand as a special friend who will stick with you no matter what deep, dark secrets you might reveal, no matter how much of a difference there is in social status, and no matter what you do: someone who you can always go back to.

But sometimes loyalty can become an issue. Sometimes being loyal comes at high costs. Sometimes loyalty is ones greatest weakness.

For my part, I seem predisposed to toxic relationships - lopsided relationships where one side of the equation seems to inflict all the pain and suffering, while the other takes it with a grin, sometimes separating for a while, but always coming back, no matter. Yet my loyalty is so strong, I cannot bear the thought of breaking it off, or replacing it with something else. "No, but THIS is the one! I just know it! Should we not follow our hearts?"

Ah, but the heart is deceitful. It seems I become addicted to the relationship, because of some arbitrary attraction, some uniqueness, the mere fact that others would not do the same, in spite of the fact that it is clearly bad for me, and not helping to the other either.

I put love and money into these relationships, and still, pain is the primary result. Do I truly enjoy receiving pain from those I love?

I'm afraid I may have made a mistake in choosing my mandolin. I was head over heals for it before even trying it out. Before trying any others, to know what to look out for..

Now that I have had it for so long, these issues are becoming more and more evident. Yet, we've been through so much together. We've gone through 30 states together. I've met people and made friends because of my mandolin. How could I ever replace it, and get something else? How could I betray my companion for so long?

Issues. So many issues. The pick guard is curled up. The body is scarred from misuse, the neck is bent, the body bowed, the action high, the tuners inconsistent, the metal rusted.. The strings take 3x the pressure to play that they should.

Ah, but we'll make it work, I say. We'll work it out. I'm sure of it. We've got too. I've invested too much time in this relationship. I can't give it up now..

I can change the strings. Certainly I can figure out a way to lower the action. Sure, it will only fix the symptoms - the body will continue to cave in, the finish will continue to scar, the rust will not go away - but what other choices do I have?

No, I can't give this up now. We're just getting close. I'm just starting to be able to make this work.

So what if it's an off balance equation? So what if playing my mandolin still causes twice the pain it should, for half the enjoyment? It's my mandolin! After all, a toxic relationship is better than none.